The founders of CMB Sourcing
Friends since school, who worked together at a factory before starting a buying house, to make sourcing clothing from Bangladesh as easy as ordering a coffee.
Founders
Founder
AB Rahman
As easy as ordering a cup of coffee: say what you want, and get exactly that.
Also Head of Growth, Collective Studio Ltd.
AB Rahman is the founder of CMB Sourcing Ltd. and Head of Growth at Collective Studio Ltd., a Narayanganj factory that puts ethical manufacturing first, on small and large runs alike. Working in fashion retail at Myer taught AB what shoppers really want: an easy, comfortable experience, not overblown marketing. Clothing brands want the same from the people who make their clothes: a partner that is easy to approach, so they can focus on what matters most: designing, selling and growing.
We are here because the hardest part of making clothes is rarely the sewing. It is the communication: a question left unanswered, a detail lost along the way, time wasted and quality compromised. AB built CMB Sourcing Ltd. to solve that one problem, and to make manufacturing clothes as easy as ordering a cup of coffee: say what you want, and get exactly that.
LinkedIn profile (opens in a new tab)
Co-founder
Homaira Jashim
A buyer always knows who is making their goods, and where.
Also co-founder, Collective Studio Ltd.
Homaira co-founded CMB Sourcing Ltd. and is also a co-founder of Collective Studio Ltd., the Narayanganj factory she helped build around ethical manufacturing, for small and large runs. That gives her first-hand knowledge of every stage of garment making, from the first sample and a short run to full production, and the questions that come with each.
Her focus is sustainable production, brand partnerships and clear communication with buyers. In practice that means steering brands towards fabrics and quantities that suit a first order, explaining each step in plain terms, and making sure a buyer always knows who is making their goods and where.
LinkedIn profile (opens in a new tab)
Where we come from
AB Rahman and Homaira Jashim have known each other for more than 15 years, since school. Both work with Collective Studio Ltd., our sister company in Narayanganj: Homaira co-founded it, and AB is its Head of Growth. So they have already worked side by side on a factory’s orders, from sampling through production to delivery.
AB has also seen the industry from the other end. Before founding CMB Sourcing Ltd., AB worked in fashion retail sales at Myer, the Australian department store, in Joondalup, Western Australia. Working on both the shop floor and the factory floor taught the same lesson twice. Whether they are shoppers or brands, people want an honest, transparent and easy experience.
Why we started CMB Sourcing Ltd.
Bangladesh already makes excellent clothing, for some of the most demanding retailers in the world. The gap is not in the making. It is in how hard the rest of it is. Communication breaks down. It is difficult to see who is really behind a supplier, whether they control the factory or only pass the order on, and who is responsible for what. Codes of conduct are missing, or exist only on paper. Buyers who cannot find a reliable partner end up compromising on quality.
We are here to make it easy. As easy as walking into a café by the beach in Australia and saying “one flat white”, and getting exactly that. A clear, smooth process is taken for granted in much of the world; we are bringing it to garment sourcing in Bangladesh, so that you can spend your time on what grows your business, such as sales and marketing, rather than on chasing your supplier.
We did not set out to be another traditional sourcing agent. We set out to build a company you feel comfortable working with. That is the heart of CMB Sourcing Ltd.
Who does what
AB, who is based in Australia and holds a Master’s in marketing and consumer behaviour from Curtin University, leads marketing and client relationships, keeps quality the first priority on every order, and researches markets and consumer behaviour so that our advice fits each brand.
Homaira meets clients and runs production, from the first conversation to delivery. As a co-founder of Collective Studio, she brings a factory owner’s knowledge of every step.
What this means for you
You deal with two founders who have known each other since school, not a chain of intermediaries. The people you meet on the first call are the people responsible for your order.
Our link with Collective Studio
We want this to be clear before you work with us. Both our founders work with Collective Studio Ltd. (opens in a new tab), a factory in Narayanganj: Homaira Jashim is one of its co-founders, and AB Rahman is its Head of Growth. Collective Studio Ltd. is our sister company: the two are separate sister companies, and its factory is our own factory for knitwear and caps; everything else is made in an audited partner factory. A client of Collective Studio filmed a visit to its factory floor with Homaira: watch the visit (3 min 47 s).
Our own orders start at 500 pieces per style and colour, so knit and cut-and-sew runs from 150 pieces per style and colour are made by Collective Studio and managed by us, with the same sampling and inspection; Collective Studio prices them separately. You are always told in writing which factory makes your order, and you receive its certificates and audit reports before production starts.
What this means for your order
For knitwear and caps we are the manufacturer, so our own factory makes the order. For everything else a buying house earns its fee by choosing the right factory for each product, not by filling one factory’s lines: those orders go to whichever audited partner factory suits the product, fabric and compliance your market needs. How we work sets out every step, and the About page lists what we do and do not do.
Talk to the founders about your next order.
Send a tech pack, a sketch or a photo of a garment you like. We reply within one working day with questions or a first costing.
- A reply within one working day
- An enquiry, not an order: you are committed to an order only when you sign the written order confirmation
- Certificates and audit reports shared before production
- AQL final inspection report before you approve shipment
- Your patterns and artwork never shown to or reused for other buyers